Liverpool and Sparta Prague cleared of FFP breach - UEFA

LONDON (Reuters) - Premier League Liverpool and Czech club Sparta Prague have been cleared of breaching UEFA's financial fair play rules, European football's governing body said on Friday.

A UEFA statement said both clubs had been found "to have satisfied the break-even requirement and are no longer under investigation".

Premier League Hull City, Israeli side Hapoel Tel-Aviv, Greek outfit Panathinaikos and Poland's Ruch Chorzow, however, have agreed settlements of 200,000 euros (145,015 pounds) for failing to comply with regulations.

Those four clubs will now be subject to ongoing monitoring, UEFA said.

Financial fair play rules, which limit club spending in relation to revenue, were introduced to prevent rich owners from pumping unlimited amounts of cash into teams and distorting the market.

Critics, however, say the new regulations have cut off any opportunity for smaller clubs to challenge the established teams for European dominance.

(Reporting by Toby Davis; editing by Pritha Sarkar)